Abstract
MR. W. R. KING, who died on April 8, aged seventy-two, was Wimshurst's assistant in the development of the Wimshurst electrical ‘influence’ machine, which of course displaced the frictional machine for the generation of static electricity in the laboratory. This type of apparatus seems to have required quite special skill in the selection and application of apparently simple materials, such as suitable glass and varnishes, necessary for reliability for experiments in static electricity; and Mr. King's experience in this respect was exceptional. The old Nairn machine of Sir Humphry Davy, now standing in the hall of the Royal Institution, owes its restoration to his skill, and he has also carried out similar work for the Science Museum.
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G., W. W. R. King. Nature 145, 850 (1940). https://doi.org/10.1038/145850a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/145850a0